A distinct feature of this particular app was the fact that users had to pay for it – most fake AV can initially be downloaded for free. This meant its creators immediately started making money and didn’t have to demand payments from users to remove “malware” that had supposedly been detected on their computers. To avoid negative reviews on Google Play all that was required was to make it look like the app was doing something useful.
Virus Shield was followed by a series of other similar fake apps. Early last week, for instance, we detected two rather interesting fake antivirus programs.
The first fake app was discovered on Windows Phone Store, which in itself was unusual – scammers tend to use Google Play. This app, which also had to be paid for up front, went by the name of Kaspersky Mobile. The fact that there is no program with that name in Kaspersky Lab’s product line didn't deter the fraudsters – they obviously didn’t expect anyone to notice.
However, the scammers seem to show a bit more knowledge about software developers and their name-dropping wasn’t limited to Kaspersky Lab. The fake AV creators uploaded numerous other types of paid apps to Windows Phone Store that used the names and logos of several popular programs.
The second fake app of note that we discovered was for sale on Google Play and was called Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2014. Just to clarify, there is no Kaspersky Lab mobile product by that name. The screenshot used on the page of the fake app was simply copied from the official Kaspersky Internet Security for Android page.
The fake app does absolutely nothing to protect the user’s device – the creators didn’t even bother to add a simulation of a scanner.
Virus Shield was followed by a series of other similar fake apps. Early last week, for instance, we detected two rather interesting fake antivirus programs.
The first fake app was discovered on Windows Phone Store, which in itself was unusual – scammers tend to use Google Play. This app, which also had to be paid for up front, went by the name of Kaspersky Mobile. The fact that there is no program with that name in Kaspersky Lab’s product line didn't deter the fraudsters – they obviously didn’t expect anyone to notice.
However, the scammers seem to show a bit more knowledge about software developers and their name-dropping wasn’t limited to Kaspersky Lab. The fake AV creators uploaded numerous other types of paid apps to Windows Phone Store that used the names and logos of several popular programs.
The second fake app of note that we discovered was for sale on Google Play and was called Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2014. Just to clarify, there is no Kaspersky Lab mobile product by that name. The screenshot used on the page of the fake app was simply copied from the official Kaspersky Internet Security for Android page.
The fake app does absolutely nothing to protect the user’s device – the creators didn’t even bother to add a simulation of a scanner.
